Tag Archives: depression

When you’re prone to feeling down or anxious, it’s smart to have a list of self-care items, because it only takes one moment to turn the day around. Here are some of my favorite mood-boosters that help me reset the moment, and ultimately, my day.

4. Tea – Unlike coffee that can make me feel jittery or keep me awake, I don’t have to worry about how tea will affect my mood down the road. You can drink 100 cups and be healthier than when you started! I still LOVE coffee (and it boosts my mood at the right time of day) but tea is a great option to give you a task and taste that leaves healthy effects. Try spiking it with apple cider vinegar for a nice little “kick!”

5. Sound – I gong my singing bowl a few times to reset the moment. Sound waves actually allow us to interrupt our fight or flight response and put us back into rest and digest. I find it also is nearly impossible to think/worry/bemoan when there is such powerful sound happening. You can also put on a favorite song or some nature sounds to turn it all around!

6. Fresh flowers – keeping a bouquet of fresh flowers lifts my spirits and reminds me that happiness can be renewed, even if it (temporarily) dies.

7. Himalayan salt crystal lamps – the story is the heat from the lightbulb activates ions in the salt that distribute into the air, purifying it and canceling out radiation from your electronics. Whether that’s true or not, the hue of this lamp is so pleasing, I put one in every room to give me warm-fuzzies when I enter.

8. Aromatherapy – invest in a diffuser, which distributes healing essential oils (like uplifting citrus) throughout your home. I got this one at Whole Foods for $30, and as a bonus, it also displays changing LCD lights, which are known to be therapeutic.
9. Tension relief – when I’m feeling down or stressed, my muscles take it all on. I’ve invested in a heating pad (for releasing), gel ice packs (for healing inflammation), Epsom salts (for relaxing baths) and a whole bunch of balms that really help soothe sore muscles. My favorite (and I’ve tried them all) is actually from the founder of Kundalini Yoga, Yogi Bhajan! It’s an Ayurvedic recipe called Narayan gel that feels as though it is really penetrating the deep tissue and relaxing it. I found this at Sprouts. I also use Doterra’s PastTense on my temples to ease my facial tension and headaches.

10. A few more things like meditation, candles, looking into my doggie’s eyes, painting with my toddler, opening a window, going on walks, putting my feet up for 5 minutes, and organizing something round out my list. I hope these help you renew your happiness, because remember, you are worthy of feeling happy, and your happiness comes entirely from within.

It was 6 months after my baby was born, and I suddenly found myself 20 pounds under my pre-baby weight. I got REALLY lucky, because many women’s bodies need 2 years or more to let go of all the extra water, fat and nutrients that that particular baby needed. We never know how post-baby body will look; we can only stay in the moment and breathe into the cards we are dealt.

I had gained 30 or so pounds during pregnancy, being very aware of what my body was asking for! It was definitely more meat and potatoes and sugar cookies than green salads. But I had been eating green salads prior to pregnancy and my body said, “hey, a little more sustenance, please!” After the baby, I was back to green smoothies and yummy healthy food, but it wasn’t because I HAD to; I ate that way because when I did, I felt more energetic; more emotionally satisfied. Pregnancy taught me to go for foods that made me FEEL good; not to just stick to a rigid diet. Pregnancy was the beginning of mindful eating.

A few months after the baby, I hadn’t even started doing yoga again when the scale started dropping. Now, two years later and I’ve maintained the weightloss. Here’s the crazy part: I’ve done the whole personal training thing, eaten rabbit food for weeks on end, and tried every-day marathons of yoga, yet I’ve never sustained my Weightloss like I have now. The one thing that’s different about my current fitness plan is MEDITATION and MINDFULNESS. Without awareness of your thoughts and emotions, and how they manifest in your life through action or reaction, your diet and exercise plan is merely a bandaid on a deep-rooted issue. In order to heal the body, you must first heal the soul, so that you can once again HEAR what your body is asking for.

For example: Merideth struggles with anxiety. She leads a busy life, and sometimes when she gets home, she grabs a bag of chips and sits in front of the TV, just to unwind and distract her from the cyclone of “to-dos” in her head. But after learning breathing and meditation techniques, she grew more aware of the emotions she was having and learned to label them as “anxiety” or simply, “thinking.” Soon after, she would get home and pour a cup of tea and have an apple; she didn’t want a full stomach for her 15 minutes of light yoga she’d do in the living room. After yoga, she ate a colorful dinner and ended her evening in the bathtub with a book. Because she knew these actions brought her peace and self-love, instead of self-loathing and guilt that came with her former habits.

Ain’t nothing wrong with vegging in front of the tv; everything in moderation! This example was just meant to show you that when you are mindful of how you feel, and how you WANT to feel, you make decisions that are much better for your wellbeing. And that is a sustainable fitness plan. Let me repeat, I’ve enjoyed two years and counting at my ideal weight.

Let me know if I can help set you up with a personalized mindfulness plan including meditation tools! Your first call is free; the second one is only $30! Clients tell me it’s a mix or goal-setting, relaxation techniques and therapy. I welcome you to try it! Click here to get my number. Namaste!!

Lindsay Aerts, a radio personality who currently hosts a show for moms on KSL radio, organizes the annual Climb Out of Darkness event in Salt Lake City. The event raises awareness for postpartum mood/mental disorders that include OCD, PTSD, anxiety, depression and more.

I had to heal my own postpartum depression (and still have “blue” days), so this story is very near and dear to my heart. So many women struggle with this yet never ask for help because of the social stigma of mental symptoms. There is also a societal pressure to “snap out of it” or “that’s just motherhood” but Lindsay, who dealt with Postpartum Anxiety, says, “motherhood is hard, but it shouldn’t be suffering.”

That’s why Lindsay is featured in today’s #15secondzen. She aims to help all moms manage their moods with this one simple tip.

Today’s ✨#15secondzen –
why we need suffering. My take on it today? When I’m in pain, I’m reminded to feel my body. To breathe. To reach out to loved ones. It turns on that need for “something more” in that spiritual sense. YOU HAVE NO CHOICE BUT TO BE PRESENT. The reason I’m so into meditating now is Because I was trying to ease suffering. And now, it is my tool for prevention of suffering.

“To live is to suffer, to survive is to find some meaning in the suffering.”

Today’s mindfulness video teaches you to stop swinging from task to task, moment to money. When you get off the monkey bars, and start to notice the moments in between tasks, you’ll realize that more life actually happens during nonaction.

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Non-action: we’re programmed to live a life of doing, fixing, planning, achieving and controlling. Our worth comes from our productivity. Non-action is when we can know our worth, and actually cause less suffering to ourselves and others, by being still, and aware of everything in- and outside of ourselves.

After watching, “Children of Men” featuring Clive Owen, I leaned over to my husband and showed him my new Pinterest board.

“Our house is now going to look like Jasper’s,” I announced, scrolling through Pin after Pin of floating shelves draped in ivy.

Jasper, the character in the movie, has the right idea: pack your house with plants to improve air purification, aesthetic appeal, and even food production! I’m growing herbs and aloe Vera right on my kitchen counter. Veggies on the balcony. There’s always flowers on my kitchen table (thanks, Trader Joe’s)! And it seems the more plants are in the home, the happier I am! And there’s actually research to prove that.

A ton more research is out there about how plants improve physical and emotional health, but you get the idea. So in the name of creating an environment that soothes you, instead of stresses you, turn to the “pot!”